- Title: USA: R & B TRIO LUCY PEARL INTRODUCE NEW SINGER AND NEWLY RELEASED SINGLE
- Date: 16th January 2001
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (REUTERS) SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) RAPHAEL SAADIQ SAYING: "That Tony! Toni! Tone! funk was truly some funk. But this Lucy Pearl is some funk too. In a new kinda way but, still in the old school funky way."
- Embargoed: 31st January 2001 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA82NQLRG6ZYDESC0MSHXMF5I4A
- Story Text: Grammy nominated R&B trio Lucy Pearl has announced a new lead singer and released the single "You" from the movie soundtrack "Save the Last Dance".
When the funk driven R&B trio Lucy Pearl lost former lead singer Dawn Robinson, they didn't have to look far for a replacement. Founding partners Raphael Saadiq (Tony! Toni! Tone!) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest) were both familiar with Joi, the well known underground diva.
Replacing the powerful vocals of Dawn Robinson would be more than a dilemma for most, but not for Raphael and Ali. In a recent interview with Reuters, Ali said "Joi has a very strong commanding presence and she's going to be perfect."
Raphael had similar sentiments.
"Joi has a lot of credibility in the underground world and now (that) she's joined Lucy Pearl were very excited about it."
Joi refers to this new relationship as her "introduction into the mainstream" and is honored that Raphael and Ali thought enough of her to ask her to join the group.
Their independently released debut album "Lucy Pearl " has received critical acclaim and garnished the group a Grammy nomination for the single "Dance Tonight," their recent single "You," a featured release from the soundtrack to the movie "Save the Last Dance," was a collaborative effort. The single features hip hop heavyweights Snoop Dogg and Q-Tip.
Snoop was thrilled to be working again with sometime collaborator Raphael. "When I heard the music I was like, yeah, I'm down with it. It was one of those projects when you hear it you really want to be a part of it."
Even though the song was not written for the movie, Raphael believes there is a thematic connection.
"The way I think this song relates to the movie, is it's a love song, itup being a love movie. It's about this girl who moves to an urban neighborhood and this group is very urban and funky.
So I think it connects in that way."
The movie "Save the last Dance" opened in theaters accross the US on January 12, 2001. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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